Coverage, scope, and application areas
- The Guidelines apply to all workplaces engaged in the manufacture, use, storage of industrial chemicals in the private sector.
- The Guidelines cover the supply chain of industrial chemicals.
- The Guidelines require establishments using industrial chemicals to comply with workplace chemical safety requirements under the OSH framework and related laws.
- Establishments using industrial chemicals are treated as hazardous workplaces and are prioritized for inspection under referenced OSH inspection classification rules.
Policy objectives and purpose
- The Guidelines aim to protect workers and properties from the hazards of chemicals.
- The Guidelines aim to prevent or reduce the incidence of chemically induced accidents, illnesses, injuries, and death resulting from the use of chemicals at work.
Key definitions established for GHS compliance
- “Chemical substance” means any organic or inorganic substance of a particular molecular identity, including any element or uncombined chemical, and any combination of such substances, excluding radioactive materials.
- “Chemical Mixture” means any combination of two or more chemical substances if the combination does not occur in nature and is not, in whole or in part, the result of a chemical reaction, and none of the substances comprising the combination is a new chemical substance; it includes non-biodegradable mixtures.
- “Container” means any bottle, box, drums, cylinder, bag, barrel, vessel, tank, among others, that contains hazardous chemical substances.
- “Criteria” means the technical definition for physical, health, and environmental hazards.
- “Establishment” refers to any single proprietorship, partnership, corporation, or similar entity operating an economic activity and engaging the services of workers.
- “Exposure” means the amount of chemical available for absorption into the body through possible routes of entry: inhalation, ingestion, and skin absorption.
- “GHS” is the Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labeling of Chemicals, a system standardizing and harmonizing chemical classification and labeling through hazard definition, classification processes, and communication of hazard information and protective measures on labels and Safety Data Sheets (SDS).
- “Hazardous materials or substances” refer to materials or substances in solid, liquid, or gaseous forms known to constitute toxic, flammable, explosive, corrosive, oxidizing, and radioactive properties.
- “Hazards” refer to the inherent characteristics of chemical substances and mixtures that exist in the workplace and in the environment, regardless of quantity, that are potentially dangerous or have capacity to harm (including capacity to burn, explode, corrode, and interfere with normal biological processes).
- “Hazard Category” is the division of criteria within each hazard class (e.g., oral acute toxicity includes five hazard categories; flammable liquids includes four hazard categories).
- “Hazard class” means the nature of the physical, health, or environmental hazard (e.g., flammable solid, carcinogen, oral acute toxicity).
- “Hazard Statement” is a statement assigned to a hazard class and category describing the nature and, where appropriate, the degree of hazard.
- “Industrial chemicals” include chemicals used where chemical manipulations are carried out even in small scale; where multiple chemical procedures and/or chemicals are used in manufacturing/production; where storage process and handling are included; and where chemical waste collection and disposal is involved.
- “Label” means an appropriate group of written, printed, or graphic information elements affixed to, printed on, or attached to the immediate container of a hazardous product, or to the outside packaging.
- “Precautionary statement” means a phrase (and/or pictogram) that describes recommended measures to minimize or prevent adverse effects from exposure or improper storage/handling of a hazardous product.
- “Safety Data Sheet (SDS)” (also referred to as Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS)) is a document that must accompany all chemicals and is supplied by the distributor, containing important physical, ecological, health, safety, and toxicological information for chemical substances or mixture ingredients used at the workplace and for transportation and utilization by consumers; it must follow Section 5-C requirements.
- “Toxic (or hazardous) substances” mean chemical substances or mixtures that may be harmful to the environment and/or human health in short-term and long-term basis if inhaled, swallowed, or absorbed through the skin.
Roles, employer duties, worker duties, committee functions
- The employer must ensure development, implementation, and monitoring of the workplace policy and program on safety in the use of chemicals, disseminated to all concerned.
- The employer must ensure chemicals are properly labeled or marked and that accurate Safety Data Sheets are provided in accordance with GHS requirements.
- The employer must provide necessary control measures, including personal protective equipment, consistent with Section 6-B.
- The employer must provide workers with information, education, and training on safe use of chemicals and GHS.
- The employer must establish and implement a chemical emergency response plan to mitigate accidents such as accidental exposure, inadvertent release, and fire or explosion, including (where appropriate) personal protective equipment, fire-fighting equipment, fire alarms, release containment measures, and evacuation of the workplace and locality.
- The employer must ensure that the Safety Officer is in charge of overall chemical safety responsibilities, including regular inspection (labeling, storing, handling, and disposal of chemicals) and training advice regarding chemical safety rules and procedures.
- Employees must comply with chemical safe-use policies and programs, take reasonable steps to eliminate or minimize risk to themselves and others, observe proper use of safeguards and safety devices, and report immediately to their supervisor any situation they believe could be a potential risk.
- The Safety and Health Committee must plan and develop accident prevention programs; direct accident prevention efforts consistent with safety programs and government regulations; conduct safety meetings at least once a month; review inspection and accident-investigation reports and program implementation; submit reports to management; provide necessary assistance to government inspecting authorities for enforcement; initiate and supervise safety training for employees; and develop and maintain a disaster contingency plan and emergency service units pursuant to the emergency preparedness manual of the Office of Civil Defense.
GHS adherence: classification, labeling, SDS, CBI handling
- Establishments must always adopt the latest provisions of GHS.
- Industrial chemicals must be classified under the following GHS physical hazard classes: Explosives, Flammable Gases, Flammable Aerosols, Oxidizing Gases, Gases Under Pressure, Flammable Liquids, Flammable Solids, Self-Reactive Substances, Pyrophoric Liquids, Pyrophoric Solids, Self-Heating Substances, Substances Which in Contact with Water Emit Flammable Gases, Oxidizing Liquids, Oxidizing Solids, Organic Peroxides, Corrosive to Metal.
- Industrial chemicals must be classified under the following GHS health hazard classes: Acute Toxicity, Skin Corrosion, Skin Irritation, Eye Effects, Sensitization, Germ Cell Mutagenicity, Carcinogenicity, Reproductive Toxicity, Systematic Target Organ Toxicity: Single Exposure & Repeated Exposure, Aspiration Toxicity.
- All industrial chemicals must be labeled with the following GHS label elements: Product Identifier, Supplier Identifier, Chemical Identity, Pictograms, Signal Words, Hazard Statement, Precautionary Statement.
- SDS (Safety Data Sheet) must be well-communicated and made available to workers and must contain 16 sections with minimum information covering identification, hazards, composition, first aid, firefighting, accidental release, handling and storage, exposure controls/personal protection, physical and chemical properties, stability and reactivity, toxicological information, ecological information, disposal considerations, transport information, regulatory information, and other information including preparation and revision.
- Confidential Business Information (CBI) claims must be limited to the names of chemicals and the concentration in mixtures.
- CBI rules must take priority for product identification, but disclosure must occur when CBI protection compromises the health and safety of workers, or during emergency situations.
- For non-emergency situations, suppliers or employers must ensure disclosure of confidential information to a safety or health professional providing medical or other safety and health services to exposed workers or consumers, and to workers or their representatives.
- Persons requesting confidential information must provide specific reasons for disclosure, agree to use the information only for worker or consumer protection, and maintain its confidentiality.
Chemical safety program elements and controls
- Establishments initiating a Chemical Safety Program must include Facilities, Control Measures, Storage Requirements and Inventory, Waste Management, Information and Training, Personal Protective Equipment, Work Environmental Monitoring (WEM), Occupational Health and Medical Surveillance, and Emergency Preparedness and Response.
- Facilities must be maintained in an orderly and safe manner with appropriate control measures in place.
- Control Measures must include any combination of:
- Engineering controls, including totally enclosed process and handling system; segregation of hazardous process from operators or other processes; partial enclosure with local exhaust ventilation; efficient and properly designed local exhaust ventilation; or sufficient general ventilation with adequate air changes per hour in the room.
- Administrative controls, including reduction of the number of workers exposed and exclusion of non-essential access; reduction in the period of exposure; regular cleaning of contaminated walls and surfaces; provision of adequate facilities for washing, changing, and storage of clothing including arrangements for laundering contaminated clothing.
- The program must implement Worker’s Right to Know, covering hazards information, access to training and education on chemical safety, and orientation on SDS.
- Workers must have the right of refusal to work if an imminent danger situation exists in the workplace that may result to illness, injury, or death, and refusal continues until corrective actions eliminate the danger.
- Storage requirements include:
- toxic substances must be procured with consultation with the Safety and Health Committee;
- no container may be accepted without an adequate identifying GHS label and an SDS supplied with the container;
- storage space must be adequate and well-ventilated;
- chemicals must be properly segregated according to GHS Physical Hazard Criteria and storage requirements stated in the SDS;
- chemicals classified under any GHS Health Hazards Danger Category (or known to be carcinogenic, mutagenic, or teratogenic) must be kept under strict controls;
- stored chemicals must be examined periodically for replacement, deterioration, and container integrity;
- storage temperature, humidity, and ventilation requirements stated in the SDS must be followed;
- quantities stored must be kept to the minimum amount; and
- chemical storage areas must have adequate security and limited access.
- Periodic inventories must be conducted regularly, and proper GHS labeling must be observed at all times.
- Waste disposal of all toxic substances must be in accordance with Title III on “Hazardous Waste Management” of DENR Administrative Order (DAO) 92-26.
- Information and training requirements include that all employees working with industrial chemicals attend Chemical Safety Training covering GHS, storage, transport, waste disposal, and emergency and first-aid measures, and be retrained on the latest revision of the “purple book” if a new industrial chemical is used; training must be regular and continuing.
- Personal Protective Equipment must adhere to Rule 1080 of the OSHS.
- Work Environmental Monitoring must adhere to Rule 1070 of the OSHS.
- Occupational Health and Medical Surveillance must comply with Rule 1960 of the OSHS.
- Medical surveillance must include regular biochemical monitoring for workers exposed to toxic substances classified under toxicity categories I and II of WHO standards.
- Biochemical monitoring must be free of charge for the workers.
- Employees’ medical records are confidential, and the employer may furnish a copy to any third party only upon the expressed approval of the employees.
- Emergency Preparedness and Response requires a written emergency procedure posted in the workplace and communicated to all workers in the area, with appropriate and adequate emergency equipment and a well-trained emergency response team provided.
Compliance monitoring, prioritization, inspection mandate
- The Bureau of Working Conditions (BWC), through DOLE Regional Offices, monitors compliance with the Guidelines, the pertinent OSHS provisions, and other related laws and policies.
- Establishments using industrial chemicals are considered hazardous workplaces under Rule 1013 of the OSH Standards and DOLE Memorandum Circular No. 02, Series of 1998 (“Guidelines for Classifying Hazardous and Non-Hazardous Workplaces”), and therefore are priority for inspection.
Penalties, repealing clause, transitory timeline, effectivity
- Violations of the Guidelines are subject to the applicable penalties provided for in the Labor Code, as amended, including other related laws.
- Orders and issuances inconsistent with the Guidelines are modified or repealed to the extent of inconsistency through the Order’s repealing clause.
- Establishments using industrial chemicals must comply with all Guidelines requirements within one (1) year from effectivity under the transitory provisions.
- Effectivity is triggered after publication in two (2) newspapers of general circulation, with an additional fifteen (15) days before effectivity.